DSP voice buffersize negotiation between DSPs for voice packet end devices

ABSTRACT

A packet switching network system for use in transferring information that is in the form of packets and including an originating device and a destination device for communicating therebetween through a packet switching network, the originating device including a sending device having a first buffer with a predetermined first buffer size, the first buffer being used to store information that is to be sent to the destination unit, the sending device for sending a request packet including the first buffer size, through the packet switching network, to the destination device, the destination device including a receiving device having a second buffer with a predetermined second buffer size, the second buffer size being used for storing information that is received from the originating device, the receiving device for receiving a request packet including the first buffer size from the originating device, determining whether or not the received first buffer size is supported by the destination device, and accordingly sending back a response, through the packet switching network, to the originating device, wherein, during initialization, the originating device and the destination device enter into negotiations as to a mutually-acceptable buffer size that is to be used for information transfer by the packet switching network system.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation application of my earlier-filed U.S.patent application Ser. No. 09/160,470, filed on Sep. 24, 1998 now U.S.Pat. No. 6,778,545,by Keyvan Moataghed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention related generally to the field of computernetworks and in particular, to transferring of voice information overframe relay in packet switching network environments.

2. Description of the Prior Art

In a networking environment where information, such as data, voice,video, audio and like information, is destined to travel from oneremotely situated device to another device, two types of such networkingenvironments may be employed: circuit switching network and packetswitching network.

FIG. 1 shows conceptual views of both of these types of networkingenvironments. A circuit switching network 10 is shown to include a firsttelecommunication device 12, which may be a telephone, coupled through apath 14 to a second telecommunication device 16, which may also betelephone. The coupling between the two devices 12 and 16, through thepath 14, includes various equipment, 18 and 20, which effect transfer ofthe information being communicated through the path 14. The circuitswitching network 10 is shown in FIG. 1 to demonstrate that wheninformation is being transferred from a given source to a particulardestination, such as from device 12 to device 16, the information willalways take the same path, i.e. through the equipment 18 and 20.

In contrast thereto, a packet switching network 22 is shown in FIG. 1 todemonstrate that the information being transferred does not necessarilytake the same path when it is transferred from one device to another. InFIG. 1, the packet switching network 22 is shown to include a firsttelecommunication device 24, coupled through a packet switching networkstructure 26, to a second telecommunication device 28.

The packet switching network structure 26 includes a plurality ofnetwork equipment, such as routers 30, 32 and 34. Information that isbeing, for example, transferred from the first device 24 to the seconddevice 28, does not necessarily take the same path every time. At onetime, such an information may take a path 36, which goes through theequipment 30 and 32 and when sent again another time, the sameinformation may go through a different path 38, which includes theequipment 34. In fact, in packet switching networks, there is muchequipment through which information may travel to get from one device toanother. The path that information takes is in part a function of theintensity of traffic through the network. For example, if the devices 24and 28 were telephone devices and there were calls being made during atime when many callers were initiating phone calls, the path that thevoice information would take is likely to be entirely different thanwhen the devices 24 and 28 transfer voice information during a time whenthere are not many callers accessing the system. An example of what thepacket switching network structure 26 may be is the Internet, in whichcase, voice may travel therethrough to get from the device 24. In thiscase, examples of what the devices 24 and 28 may be are personalcomputers (PCs).

Thus, in circuit switching networks, the same path is used to transferinformation and that path is apriori known, whereas, in the case ofpacket switching networks, the path that information takes is firstlybased upon the availability of the equipment and circuits and secondlynot a dedicated path or apriori known. Accordingly, transfer of voiceinformation through the Internet is less costly than the transfer of thesame kind of information through a circuit switching network. That is,in a circuit switching network, such as used by traditional telephonecompanies, each user is assigned a dedicated path whereas in an Internetenvironment, multiple users share the same path.

In a packet switching environment such as the Internet, since differentpaths may be taken for transfer of information, different amounts oftime delay are associated with the transfer of data. For example, inFIG. 1, in the packet switching network 22, if the information beingtransferred between devices 24 and 28 takes the path 36, this may resultin less delay than if the same information transfer were to take thepath 38 since the latter is going through an additional router. As thepath that information will take in a packet switching networkenvironment is unknown, so is the delay associated with that path.Accordingly, information being transferred is first buffered (ortemporarily stored) to account for the delay associated with thetransfer of information.

When information is sent through a packet switching network environment,it is broken up into various packets and each packet is sent in a frameover the network. When all of the packets of the same information arriveat their destination, they are placed back together for use by the user.Data being sent in this respect is not much affected by the delay thateach packet may experience because even if this delay accumulates tominutes, a user is not particularly disturbed to wait that long beforereceiving data. However, when this information is in the form of voice,i.e. voice sent over the Internet, the accumulative amount of delayexperienced by the separate packets that are sent through the Internetis often times annoying to the users. For example, if one were to speakthrough a telephone that was coupled to transfer information through thenetwork and would have to wait 10 seconds to receive a voice back fromanother user at the destination site, there would be much disturbance tothe listener.

To account for this delay, prior art methods and apparatus have employedbuffering techniques to store the information that is to be transferredin a temporary location while previous information is being sent throughthe network. On the receiving side, the information that is received isbuffered while the user is listening to the information previouslyreceived. However, due to the buffer size differences between thesending side and the receiving side of the network, there, nevertheless,remains a significant problem with the delay associated withtransferring voice information through a packet switching networkingenvironment, such as the Internet, that has proven to be disturbing tousers of this type of system.

There is therefore a need to maximize the performance of a system fortransfer of voice information from one device to another through apacket switching network such as to avoid unnecessary delay experiencedby users of the system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, a packet switching network system for use in transferringinformation that is in the form of packets includes an originatingdevice and a destination device for communicating therebetween through apacket switching network. The originating device includes a sendingdevice having a first buffer with a predetermined first buffer size, thefirst buffer being used to store information that is to be sent to thedestination unit. The sending device sends a request packet includingthe first buffer size, through the packet switching network, to thedestination device, the latter including a receiving device having asecond buffer with a predetermined second buffer size, the second bufferbeing used for storing information that is received from the originatingdevice. The receiving device receives a request packet including thefirst buffer size from the originating device, determines whether or notthe received first buffer size is supported by the destination device,and accordingly sends back a response, through the packet switchingnetwork, to the originating device, wherein the originating device andthe destination device enter into negotiations as to amutually-acceptable buffer size that is to be used for informationtransfer by the packet switching network system.

The foregoing and other features of the invention will no doubt becomeapparent after reading the following detailed description of thepreferred embodiments, which is illustrated in the several figures ofthe drawing.

IN THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a conceptual view of two types of networking environments:circuit switching network and packet switching network.

FIG. 2 illustrates a packet switching networking structure including themethod and apparatus of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 3-8 shows examples of different operational scenarios as may occurin employing the preferred embodiment depicted in FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to FIG. 2., a packet switching networking structure 40 isshown to include a first telecommunications device 42, which may be atelephone device, coupled to a sending digital signal processing (DSP)device 44, which is in turn coupled to a sending interface device 46 forcoupling the information from the device 42 through a packet switchingnetwork 48 to a second interface device 50 (devices 42, 44 and 46 may becollectively referred to as a sending device). The second interfacedevice 50 is coupled to a second DSP device 52, which is in turn coupledto a second telecommunication device 54 (devices 50, 52 and 54 may becollectively referred to as a receiving device).

The devices 42 and 54 may be telephone devices that operate through theInternet, or the packet switching network 48. An example of the packetswitching network 48 is the Internet. The DSP devices 44 and 52 processthe information being sent and received by the devices 42 and 54. Forexample, if information was to be sent by the device 42, it would firstbe converted from analog format to digital format by the DSP device 44and then sent, through the interface 46 and the network 48, to theinterface device 50. Subsequently, the interface device 50 wouldtransfer the information that was sent by the device 42 to the DSPdevice 52 where it would be converted from digital form to analog formatprior to being provided to the user at the device 54.

As shown in FIG. 2, the network 48 generally comprises a plurality ofrouter equipment, 56, 58, 60 and 62, for transferring information inpacket form between the devices 42 and 54. As previously noted,information may take different paths through the routers each time it issent. A router is a device that can select a path that informationshould take thereby requiring the router to have an understanding of thenetwork and how to determine the best route for the path.

The interface devices 46 and 50 place the information in a predeterminedformat. For example, if voice is being sent from the device 42 to thedevice 54, the interface device 46 places the voice information in aformat specifying the origination address (or where the voice is beingsent from,) followed by some header information and the contents of thevoice information. The voice information may be further followed byadditional protocol information. On the receiving end, the interfacedevice 50 would similarly parse the pre-formatted information in orderto extract voice contents for use by the device 54.

Each of the DSP devices 44 and 52 have associated therewith, a bufferwith a predetermined buffer size. An example of a DSP device includes aDSP chip (or semiconductor device) manufactured by Texas Instrument,Inc., such as the TMS320LC542. Such a device may use an internal bufferthat is 20, 22, 30 or 32 bytes in size depending on how the chip wasbeing configured. Similarly, other DSP devices, made available by othermanufacturers for commercial use, may have different buffer sizesassociated therewith. Accordingly, the buffer size associated with theDSP device 44 may be and is likely to be different than the buffer sizeassociated with the DSP device 52. This problem is perhaps betterappreciate given an example.

If, for instance, the buffer size of the DSP device 44, in FIG. 2, is 32bytes and the buffer size of the DSP device 52 is 20 bytes, there is adelay associated with the processing of voice information that isobvious to users of the system and that increases substantially as moreusers access the system. That is, the DSP device 44 and the interfacedevice 46 will send the 32 bytes of information through the network 48.On the receive side, since the DSP buffer is only 20 bytes in size, theinterface device 50 passes the first 20 bytes of the 32-byte wideinformation to the DSP device 52 for processing and stores the remainderof the 32 bytes, i.e. 12 bytes, in a temporary buffer location for laterprocessing. This results in wasting of buffer storage space since the 12remaining bytes will be saved in a 20-byte buffer space leaving eightbytes of that buffer space unused. Furthermore, there is a delayassociated with first processing of the first 20 bytes and laterprocessing of the remaining 12 bytes, which leads to potentialdisturbance to users of the system. This delay is even more severelynoticed when there are multiple users of the system. For example, whilenot shown in FIG. 2, there may be many more devices such as device 54,where multiple users are receiving calls through the network 48. In thiscase, while there is one interface device 50, there are as many DSPdevices (similar to the DSP device 52) as there are users and each ofthese DSP devices will experience a delay in processing thereby leadingto a substantially noticeable delay to the multiple users of the system.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, this problem isresolved by negotiating the sizes of the send and receive DSP buffersprior to transferring voice information over the network. That is, inoperation, after the user at the device 42 initiates a telephone call(or dials the numbers), the DSP device 44, through the interface device46 and the network 48, transmits the size of its buffer in the form of apacket to the DSP device 52. In the example provided above, the buffersize is 32 bytes. Then, a response is awaited as to whether such abuffer size can be supported by the receive side. If the DSP device 52,on the receive side, similarly supports a 32-byte buffer size, a replyis sent accordingly back through the interface device 50, the network 48and the interface device 46 to so indicate and communication begins.

If on the other hand, this buffer size can not be supported by the DSPdevice 52, such as in the example provided above where a 20-byte buffersize was employed in the receive side, a reply is similarly sent backfrom the DSP device 52 to the DSP device 44. In this case, a 20-bytesize buffer is employed when communication begins. While this may appearat first to be an ineffective use of the 32-byte buffer size, employinga smaller buffer size that can be supported by the send as well as thereceive apparatus effectively increases system performance over the useof a single higher buffer size because a significant delay would beexperienced by temporary storage of information while processingprevious information on the side having the smaller buffer size, asexplained above.

This negotiation of buffer sizes is to become even more important withthe advent of different send and receive apparatus that are notnecessarily compatible with one another due to having been manufacturedby various companies. For example, today, dedicated structures (usingthe same DSP buffer sizes) on either side of the network are prevalent,however, with the passage of time, these structures will be replaced bystructure that commonly includes different buffer sizes depending onwhich company's equipment is being employed. At that time, it willbecome essential to adapt to the various buffer sizes while maintainingmaximum system performance and efficiency. Additionally, the user isoffered optimization of the buffer size for adapting to differentnetwork scenarios.

For example, today there is approximately six micro-seconds perkilometer of delay per packet (for a 64-byte packet size). Therefore,for a user to transmit information from the U.S. to Europe, there is farmore delay than for the same user to transmit information within theU.S. or somewhere closer in terms of distance. Also, there are timeswhen the network is being used far more heavily than other times. Thereare generally several types of delay in networking environments, such aspropagation delay (propagation delay has to do with how far apartdevices that are communicating are located with respect to each other)and processing delay. There is also the added delay for buffering andre-buffering due to the length of the buffer size problem explainedabove.

The present invention allows for adaptation to different delay scenariosby setting-up a different buffer size between the send and receiveapparatus. This is especially effective when a network has been set-upto operate with a predetermined buffer size and it is noticed that thenetwork is not properly conforming because voice quality is poor.Accordingly, the buffer size is altered to improve voice quality byreducing the delay associated with transmission of information. Thepresent invention allows for negotiation or re-negotiation of buffersize based upon statistical data related to the network traffic, i.e.traffic through the network in the recent past or on particular days inthe past for so many years and the like.

FIGS. 3-8 show examples of different scenarios that may be presentduring negotiation of buffer sizes between two devices, such as devices42 and 54 (in FIG. 2). In FIG. 3, an originating device A 60 (thisdevice may include the DSP and interface devices, 44 and 46, discussedabove with respect to FIG. 2) is shown to send a request packet 62including the buffer size that the device 60 can support to adestination device B 64 (this device may include the DSP and interfacedevices, 52 and 50, discussed above with respect to FIG. 2). Thedestination device 64 receives the request packet 62 and verifieswhether or not it is available to support the offered buffer size. Ifthe destination device 64 can support the offered buffer size, then itwill issue a confirmation packet 66, in response to the offered buffersize, back to the originating device 60 in less than T_vbuf time. T_vbufrepresents the time associated with sending a request packet andreceiving a confirmation packet. N_vbuf represents the number of timesthat a request packet may be sent before negotiations are terminated, aswill be made clear in the examples to follow. T_vbuf multiplied byN_vbuf represents the entire time, at 68 (in FIG. 3), that requestpackets are sent and confirmation packets are received.

FIG. 4 shows another example of the protocol between two devicescommunicating through the packet switch network using the method andapparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 4, originating device 60sends a request packet 62 to destination device 64 and awaits a time,defined by T_vbuf, for a confirmation packet from the destination device64. In this example, the originating device 60 receives no confirmationpacket back from the destination device 64 within the time perioddefined by T_vbuf. Consequently, once the time, T_vbuf, has expired,another request packet 70 is sent. In fact, if no confirmation packet isreceived, the originating device 60 continues to send request packetsand awaits T_vbuf for a return confirmation an N_vbuf number of times.In this example, after the second time a request packet is sent, aconfirmation packet 72 is received. However, if no such confirmationpacket is received and an N_vbuf number of request packets are sent,then a time-out is declared. Thus, the time-out limit is defined by thevalues of T_vbuf and N_vbuf, which are both programmable by the user andare practically adjusted as a function of where calls are being madefrom and to and the distance a call has to travel.

In FIG. 5, an example is shown of a request packet 62 being sent fromthe originating device 60 to the destination device 64. The originatingdevice 60 includes the buffer size it supports within the request packet62 but in this example, the buffer size of the originating device 60 isnot available at the destination device 64. Consequently, a rejectpacket 74 is sent to the originating device 60 by the destination device64 to reflect that the originating device's buffer size can not besupported and in this case each device uses its own buffer size duringtransfer of information therebetween.

In FIG. 6, while multiple request packets, 62, 76, 78 and 80, are sentfrom the originating device 60 to the destination device 64, noconfirmation packets or reject packets, responsive to the originatingdevice's request are sent by the destination device 64. In this case,the timer, defined by T_vbuf multiplied by N_vbuf, times out or expires,as shown at 82 (the time T_vbuf times, or multiplied by, N_vbuf is shownat 84) and each of the originating and destination devices use their ownbuffer size.

In FIG. 7, the originating device 60 to the destination device 64 sendsthe request packet 62 but in this case, the requested buffer size is notavailable at the destination device 64. However, instead of sending areject packet, the destination device 64 sends a different buffer size,which is included within a request 86 to the originating device 60. Thisis in effect, a request for a new, or different, buffer size other thanthe buffer size offered by the originating device. Additionally, thedestination device 64 starts its T_vbuf timer awaiting confirmation fromthe originating device 60. The buffer size that is included within therequest 86 is a buffer size that is supported by the destination device64. The originating device 60, in turn, sends a confirmation packet 88to the destination device 64, which includes information eitherconfirming use of this new buffer size or rejecting the same. In thecase where the new buffer size is accepted by the originating device 60,this new buffer size is employed during information transfer, otherwise,each device uses its own buffer size.

FIG. 7 is shown as an example of when the new buffer size is accepted bythe originating device 60 and thus the confirmation packet 88 is sentaccordingly. FIG. 8, on the other hand, is shown as an example of whenthe new buffer size is not supported by the originating device 60 and areject packet 90 is sent to the destination device 64 indicating so. Aspreviously noted, in the example shown in FIG. 7, the system uses thenew buffer size offered by the destination device 64 within the requestpacket 86, whereas in the example shown in FIG. 8, each of theoriginating and destination devices use their own buffer size.

While the discussion above may not have reflected so, in each of therequest packets shown in FIGS. 3-8, there is included the buffer sizethat the originating device is offering to use during buffernegotiations performed at the outset of a call initiation. Further aperson of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the inventiveprinciples can be embodied in a computer readable medium having storedtherein computer readable program code comprising instructions forperforming the steps of the embodiments described above.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to certain preferred embodiments, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that various alterations and modifications inform and detail may be made therein. Accordingly, it is intended thatthe following claims cover all such alterations and modifications asfall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

1. A sending device for use in a packet switching network system fortransferring packetized information, comprising: a sending digitalbuffer with a predetermined sending buffer size, the sending digitalbuffer configured to store information provided by a user that is to besent to a destination device through the packet switching network,wherein the sending device is configured to send a request packetincluding the sending buffer size to the destination device through thepacket switching network, wherein said sending device includes: anoriginating telecommunications device operative to develop originatinganalog signals responsive to the information provided by the user; anoriginating digital signal processing (DSP) device configured to produceoriginating digital interface signals by converting the originatinganalog signals into digital format and store the originating digitalinterface signals in the sending digital buffer; and an originatinginterface device operative to develop network packets for transfer inframes through the packet switching network to the destination device,and wherein the sending device and the destination device enter intonegotiations as to a mutually-acceptable digital buffer size that is tobe used for information transfer through the packet switching networksystem thereby increasing system performance by reducing or avoidingdelays experienced by the user and the negotiations terminate upon oneof the receiving a confirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffersize can be supported, the request packet is sent a number of timesuntil a predetermined number of requests is reached with no response,receiving a reject message indicating that the sending buffer size isnot supported at the destination device resulting in the sending deviceand destination device will use their own buffer sizes, a predeterminedtime interval equal to the predetermined number of requests multiple bya time associated with sending the request packet and receiving theconfirmation packet expires, or a request for a different buffer sizethan was sent in the request packet is received generated at thedestination device.
 2. A sending device for use in a packet switchingnetwork system for transferring information that is in the form ofpackets comprising: buffer means having a predetermined first buffersize, the buffer means for use in storing information provided by a userin digital form that is to be sent, through the packet switchingnetwork, to a destination device, wherein the sending device isconfigured to send a request packet including the first buffer size tothe destination device through the packet switching network, whereinsaid sending device includes: an originating telecommunications deviceoperative to develop originating analog signals responsive to theinformation provided by the user; and an originating digital signalprocessing (DSP) device configured to develop originating digitalinterface signals by converting the originating analog signals todigital format and store the originating digital interface signals inthe sending digital buffer; an originating interface device configuredto develop network packets responsive to said originating digitalinterface signals for transfer in frames through the packet switchingnetwork to the destination device, and wherein the sending device andthe destination device enter into negotiations as to amutually-acceptable digital buffer size that is to be used forinformation transfer through the packet switching network system therebyincreasing system performance by reducing or avoiding delays experiencedby the user and the negotiations terminate upon one of the receiving aconfirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffer size can besupported, the request packet is sent a number of times until apredetermined number of requests is reached with no response, receivinga reject message indicating that the sending buffer size is notsupported at the destination device resulting in the sending device anddestination device will use their own buffer sizes, a predetermined timeinterval equal to the predetermined number of requests multiple by atime associated with sending the request packet and receiving theconfirmation packet expires, or a request for a different buffer sizethan was sent in the request packet is received generated at thedestination device.
 3. A method for negotiating buffer size in a packetswitching network system for transferring information that is in theform of packets between a sending device and a receiving devicecomprising: receiving information to be transmitted to a destinationdevice; sending a request packet including a first buffer sizeassociated with a first digital buffer, through the packet switchingnetwork, to the destination device; negotiating a mutually-acceptablebuffer size that is to be used for information transfer through thepacket switching network system and the negotiations terminate upon oneof the receiving a confirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffersize can be supported, the request packet is sent a number of timesuntil a predetermined number of requests is reached with no response,receiving a reject message indicating that the sending buffer size isnot supported at the destination device resulting in the sending deviceand destination device will use their own buffer sizes, a predeterminedtime interval equal to the predetermined number of requests multiple bya time associated with sending the request packet and receiving theconfirmation packet expires, or a request for a different buffer sizethan was sent in the request packet is received generated at thedestination device; receiving information provided by a user; developingoriginating analog signals based on the information provided by theuser; developing originating digital interface signals by converting theoriginating analog signals to digital format; storing the originatingdigital interface signals in the first digital buffer; and developingnetwork packets responsive to the originating digital interface signalsfor transfer in frames through the packet switching network to thedestination device.
 4. A computer readable medium having stored thereincomputer readable program code comprising instructions for performingthe following steps: receiving information to be transmitted to adestination device; sending a request packet including a first buffersize associated with a first digital buffer, through the packetswitching network, to the destination device; negotiating amutually-acceptable buffer size that is to be used for informationtransfer through the packet switching network system and thenegotiations terminate upon one of the receiving a confirmation packetacknowledging the sending buffer size can be supported, the requestpacket is sent a number of times until a predetermined number ofrequests is reached with no response, receiving a reject messageindicating that the sending buffer size is not supported at thedestination device resulting in the sending device and destinationdevice will use their own buffer sizes, a predetermined time intervalequal to the predetermined number of requests multiple by a timeassociated with sending the request packet and receiving theconfirmation packet expires, or a request for a different buffer sizethan was sent in the request packet is received generated at thedestination device; receiving information provided by a user; developingoriginating analog signals based on the information provided by theuser; developing originating digital interface signals by converting theoriginating analog signals to digital format; storing the originatingdigital interface signals in the first digital buffer; and developingnetwork packets responsive to the originating digital interface signalsfor transfer in frames through the packet switching network to thedestination device.
 5. A destination device, for use in a packetswitching network system for transferring information that is in theform of packets between an originating device and the destination devicevia network signals through the packet switching network comprising: areceiving digital buffer with a predetermined receiving buffer size, thereceiving digital buffer configured to store information that isreceived from the originating device; a destination interface deviceoperative to develop destination DSP signals responsive to said networksignals received from the originating device; a destination DSP deviceoperative to store the destination DSP signals in the receiving digitalbuffer and develop destination telecommunications signals responsive tosaid destination DSP signals by converting said destination DSP signalsfrom digital format to analog format; and a destinationtelecommunications device responsive to said destinationtelecommunications signals, wherein the destination device is operativeto: receive a request packet, including a sending buffer size of theoriginating device, from the originating device; determine whether ornot the sending buffer size is supported by the destination device; andsend a response to the originating device, through the packet switchingnetwork, as to whether or not the received sending buffer size issupported by the destination device, and wherein the originating deviceand the destination device enter into negotiations as to amutually-acceptable digital buffer size that is to be used forinformation transfer by the packet switching network system therebyincreasing system performance by reducing or avoiding delays experiencedby the user and the negotiations terminate upon one of the sending aconfirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffer size can besupported, sending a reject message indicating that the sending buffersize is not supported at the destination device resulting in the sendingdevice and destination device will use their own buffer sizes, apredetermined time interval equal to the predetermined number ofrequests multiple by a time associated with sending the request packetand receiving the confirmation packet expires, or sending a request fora different buffer size than was sent in the request packet is sent fromthe destination device.
 6. A destination device, for use in a packetswitching network system for transferring information that is in theform of packets between an originating device and the destination devicevia network signals through the packet switching network comprising:receiving buffer means having a predetermined receiving buffer size, thereceiving buffer means for use in storing information that is receivedfrom the originating device; a destination interface device operative todevelop destination DSP signals responsive to said network signalsreceived from the originating device; a destination DSP device operativeto store the destination DSP signals in the receiving buffer means andto develop destination telecommunications signals responsive to saiddestination DSP signals by converting said destination DSP signals fromdigital format to analog format; and a destination telecommunicationsdevice responsive to said destination telecommunications signals,wherein the destination is operative to: receive a request packet,including a sending buffer size of the originating device, from theoriginating device; determine whether or not the sending buffer size issupported by the destination device; and send a response to theoriginating device, through the packet switching network, as to whetheror not the sending buffer size is supported by the destination device,and wherein the originating device and the destination device enter intonegotiations as to a mutually-acceptable digital buffer size that is tobe used for information transfer by the packet switching network systemthereby increasing system performance by reducing or avoiding delaysexperienced by the user and the negotiations terminate upon one of thesending a confirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffer size canbe supported, sending a reject message indicating that the sendingbuffer size is not supported at the destination device resulting in thesending device and destination device will use their own buffer sizes, apredetermined time interval equal to the predetermined number ofrequests multiple by a time associated with sending the request packetand receiving the confirmation packet expires, or sending a request fora different buffer size than was sent in the request packet is sent fromthe destination device.
 7. A method for negotiating buffer size betweenan originating device and a destination device for use in a packetswitching network system through a packet switching network comprising:receiving a request packet, including a sending buffer size of theoriginating device, from the originating device; converting the requestpacket into analog form; determining whether or not the sending buffersize is supported by the destination device; sending back a response tothe originating device, through the packet switching network, as towhether or not the sending buffer size is supported by the destinationdevice; and negotiating as to a mutually-acceptable buffer size that isto be used for information transfer through the packet switching networksystem to reduce or avoid delays and the negotiations terminate upon oneof the sending a confirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffersize can be supported, sending a reject message indicating that thesending buffer size is not supported at the destination device resultingin the sending device and destination device will use their own buffersizes, a predetermined time interval equal to the predetermined numberof requests multiple by a time associated with sending the requestpacket and receiving the confirmation packet expires, or sending arequest for a different buffer size than was sent in the request packetis sent from the destination device.
 8. A computer readable mediumhaving stored therein computer readable program code comprisinginstructions for performing the following steps: receiving a requestpacket, including a sending buffer size associated with the originatingdevice, from the originating device; converting the request packet intoanalog form; determining whether or not the sending buffer size issupported by the destination device; sending back a response to theoriginating device, through the packet switching network, as to whetheror not the sending buffer size is supported by the destination device;and negotiating as to a mutually-acceptable buffer size that is to beused for information transfer through the packet switching networksystem to reduce or avoid delays and the negotiations terminate upon oneof the sending a confirmation packet acknowledging the sending buffersize can be supported, sending a reject message indicating that thesending buffer size is not supported at the destination device resultingin the sending device and destination device will use their own buffersizes, a predetermined time interval equal to the predetermined numberof requests multiple by a time associated with sending the requestpacket and receiving the confirmation packet expires, or sending arequest for a different buffer size than was sent in the request packetis sent from the destination device.
 9. A sending device, comprising: ananalog originating device configured to generate an analog outputresponsive to a user input; an originating digital signal processing(DSP) device configured to convert the analog output into a digitaloutput and to store the digital output in a sending buffer having afixed and predetermined sending buffer size; and an originatinginterface device configured to generate network signals for transmissionin a packet network responsive to the digital output; wherein thenetwork signals comprise a request packet including the fixed andpredetermined sending buffer size of the sending buffer and wherein theoriginating interface device is configured to transmit the requestpacket to a destination device having a receiving buffer with a fixedand predetermined receiving buffer size, and wherein the originatinginterface device is further configured to: receive an acknowledgementpacket from the destination device responsive to the request packet;repeat the transmission of the request packet until a timeout limit isreached or the acknowledgment packet is received; and send at least oneof a confirmation packet and a reject packet responsive to theacknowledgment packet.
 10. The sending device of claim 9, wherein thefixed and predetermined receiving buffer size is at least as large asthe fixed and predetermined sending buffer size and wherein theacknowledgment packet is a confirmation packet.
 11. The sending deviceof claim 10, wherein the acknowledgment packet is a reject packetindicating that the destination device cannot support the fixed andpredetermined sending buffer size.
 12. The sending device of claim 9,wherein the acknowledgment packet includes the fixed and predeterminedreceiving buffer size.